THE fourth annual Gulf Bike Week will take place from 18 to 20 October, 2012, at Dubai Festival City “promising bike enthusiasts and families non-stop action and incredible performances, guaranteed to surpass previous years.”
Organized in Dubai by Clarion Events Middle East, the Gulf Bike Week is the leading annual festival of motorcycling in the Middle East. Held under the patronage of His Excellency Mohammed Bin Sulayem, FIA Vice-President for Sport and President of the Automobile & Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE), the event has increased in popularity with each year and now draws participants and enthusiasts from across the region.
Christopher Hudson, Managing Director of Clarion Events Middle East, said: “Gulf Bike Week has been a consistent success since its initiation in 2009. In 2011, we had 80 exhibitors and over 30,000 visitors attend the show. After careful consideration, we have moved the event to the end of the calendar year, October 2012, to coincide with the beginning of the riding season here in the Middle East.”
Marcel Bode, General Manager of Harley-Davidson of Dubai, said: “Gulf Bike Week has been a great platform for us to promote the Harley-Davidson lifestyle and its products over the last years, with a festival atmosphere, good music, great people and great bikes. With the AMD custom bike build affiliation it has also proven that the Gulf region’s bike builders can compete with the best in the world. The new dates for 2012 will be more convenient for us as it is right at the start of the season, in time for us to launch our new 2013 Harley-Davidson models.”
Harley-Davidson is in the number one slot for market share in the Middle East among large displace men motorcycles. In the past three years, Gulf Bike Week was held in February, and so far exhibitor response to the date move has been positive.
“In 2011,” Hudson added, “Gulf Bike Week thrilled visitors with the AMD Official World Championship of Custom Bike Building Affiliate Custom Bike Show, Red Bull FMX Stunt Arena, Street Bike Stunts, Rolling Stone Battle of the Bands, Super Moto Racing, Charity Bike Ride, ‘In Show’ Bike Park, Local Skateboarders, BMX riders, and an exhibition showcasing bikes from renowned companies such as Aprilia, BMW, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Honda, KTM, Kawasaki, Suzuki and many more.”
Gulf Bike Week is the Middle East’s only dedicated urban bike festival, and as such offers vendors the an exhibition platform from which to showcase products in a region that is seeing rapid motorcycle growth.
The event supports a market that is worth over $1 billion regionally, with over 1.5 million registered motorcycles (aside from ATVs and UTVs), and the fastest growing All/Urban Terrain Vehicle market in the world.
